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The Fire tree lacks the survivability of frost, but has in exchange higher AOE (area of effect) damage and the ability to kill mobs faster one by one. It sacrifices mana-utility for higher power. A basic fire leveling build at by level 43 would be the following: Fire Leveling. In general it is not a good idea to begin leveling as a fire mage as of Cataclysm due to fire's complete dependence on spell crit chance. Fire becomes more viable as a leveling build once you have full points in Improved Scorch and Firestarter. (Level 43)

Your first talent taken should always be master of elements. As previously stated, fire mages are very mana starved.

Fire relies on critical strikes to maximize its damage, so taking talents in Ignite is a must. Always pick up 1-point talent Dragon's Breath as soon as it becomes available because in the 5 seconds the mob is "stunned" you can cast a larger spell, preferably Fireball, safely. If playing with a more glasscannon approach this will be very valuble.

Raiding mages generally want high single target DPS and/or lots of AoE power. Depending on the mage's gear, length of the fight, movement, trash clearing, and interruptions, there's no real "perfect" raiding build. These are the standard builds for each school and how casting works to maximize DPS.